This was our first time ever kayaking. The guide was great. The equipment was great and the location was not too busy with boats
I took a short bus ride from downtown and showed up in this cute waterfront town. The staff at Ocean River were all really nice and helpful. They don't provide you with a lot of gear which surprised me since I paddle in places that need wetsuits and spray jackets. They did have a dry bag and partial spray skirt which I appreciated. We didn't leave the dock until 1045am so I was bummed when the tour only went until 1240pm. Given the literally perfect paddling weather, I would have liked some accommodation for the later departure due to late arrivals. That's the challenge with group tours but I would definitely go out with them again. I even recommended them to a couple I met in downtown Victoria the next day.
Great value for the tour, length of time, and the attention from our guide. I loved many things about the experience: perfect weather, small group size, funny stories our guide shared about humans doing really incredible things and also really dumb things in the ocean. The marine animal education was great. Most impressive was the ability of our guide to observe all us kayakers and give us directions to keep us from getting injured by the currents, our own bad driving, or even our own hands getting squashed between kayaks
Megan was our guide and she is exceptional—- has knowledge of the area and the personality. We enjoyed talking with her on so many subjects. She was easy going and helpful in giving us instructions before we headed out. We also saw a seal within 5 ft of our kayak.
Day tour out of Oak Bay Marina guided by Lee was great. The whole experience was super. The staff at Ocean River were great, and even called me the day before to review updates to the tour itinerary. Lee was a great guide and really knows the area. Even if you are capable of doing this yourself, it helps to have an experienced guide who knows where the tidal currents and eddies are to avoid wasted effort battling the currents as you tour the islands. Rental equipment was first rate. Saw lots of seals and waterfowl. Just missed an Orca pod by a few hours. Meaghan was taking a family out at the same time and her interaction with them also looked to be top notch. James has a full line of paddle gear from boats to booties at the paddle shack and was interesting to talk to to learn about their newest lineup of sea kayaks.